Sheet-metal wheel



A. COTTON AND L. F. KOELLNER.

SHEET METAL WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 23. 1919.

1,352,728. PatentedSept. 14,1920.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

5 vwewfom Afred'bttonfi laaz'eflffaew A. COTTON AND L. F. KOELLNER.

SHEET METAL WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 23. 1919.

Patented Sept. 14,

4 SHEETSSHEET 2- TI IA'IIII/l 3 mum brow Abfiai @zw/m A. COTTON AND L.F- KOELLNER.

SHEET METAL WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 23. 1919.

1 ,352,7 23, v PatentedSept. 14, 1920.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

anvewfom A. COTTON AND L. F. KOELLNER.

SHEET METAL WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 23.19|9.

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m ell/f Aim am, m w-arr UNITED STATLES ALFRED COTTON AND LOUIE F.KOELLNER, 0F HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT.

SHEET-METAL WHEEL.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Sept. 14, 1920.

Application filed July 23, 1919. Serial No. 312,731.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, ALFRED COTTON and LOUIEF. KoELLxER, citizens of the United States, and residents of Hartford,in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Sheet-Metal lVheels, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in vehicle wheels, and has for,its general object the provision of a light and strong metallic wheelhaving the hub and the rim thereof connected by a sheet metal web soconstructed as to adapt the wheel to sustain heavy loads and toeffectively resist torsional and lateral strains.

Another object of the invention is to provide a light but exceedinglyrigid hub and rim connecting member or web for metallic wheels of thedisk type which may be readily formed of light sheet metal. 7

A further object of the invention is to provide a connecting web ormember for the hub and rim of a wheel formed by folding a blank ofmetallic stock to produce a web of general disk form having radialcorrugations of considerable depth at the center of the web, saidcorrugations increasing in width and decreasing in depth toward theperimeter of the web, the axial depth of the corrugations at the hubbeing governed by the length of the portion of the hub available forconnection with the web.

In the drawings; Figure 1 1s a side ele-.

vation showing the outer face of one form of wheel, embodying theinvention, a portion of the outer member of the sheet metal web beingbroken away;

Fig. 2 a transverse sectional view thereof;

Fig. 3 a side elevatlon showing the inner face of the wheel;

F 1g. 4 a fragmentary transverse section of the wheel on an enlargedscale;

Fig. 5 a fragmentary section on the line- V-V of Fig. 2;

VI-VI of Fig. 2;

, Figs. 7 and 8 fragmentary sections on the line VIII-VIII of Fig. 2,the outer member only of the web being shown in Fig. 7

Figs. 9 and 10 detail vertical transverse sections on an enlarged scaleof the inner and outer members, respectively, of the form of web shownin Figs. 1 to 8;

the-opposite'f'aces of a modified construction gf web having integralinner and outer memers;

Fig. 14 a vertical transverse section of the form of web shown in Figs.12 and 13.

Referring to the various parts by numerals, l designates the hub of theWheel, 2' and 3 the two sections of ademountable rim, and 4 a suitablepneumatic tire. The hub is preferably made of cast steel and the rimsections of rolled steel. The hub andrim are connected by a sheet metalweb structure comprising an inner disk-like portion 5, an outerdisk-like portion 6, and a sheet metal bearing sleeve or tubular member7 extending through an axial opening in the web and welded adjacent itsends to the disk-like portion 6 and a driving spider 13 hereinafterdescribed.

The disk-like portion 5 of the web is corrugated along substantiallyradial lines, said corrugations increasing in width and decreasing indepth toward the perimeter of the disk. The disk-like portion 5 of theWeb is of general conoidal form, the summits of the ridges formed by thecorrugations at the inner face of the wheel lying in substantially thesame vertical plane throughout the length of the ridges. The outerdisk-like portion 6 of the web is dished and the inner face thereof.engages the summits of the ridges formed at the outer side of the webportion 5 by the corrugations throughout the length of said ridges, andthe portions edges. 'The welded members 5 and 6 and Fig. 6 a fragmentarysection on the line sleeve 7 thus form a skeleton sheet metal conoidalrim support or web.

A series of blocks 9 are secured adjacent the perimeter of the web .atthe inner side of the member 5, and a series of spacing members 10 aresecured between the members 5 and- 6 in register with blocks 9. Thesection 2 of the divided rim is fixed to the sheet metal web by rivets22 which pass through blocks 9, disk-like member 5, spacing members 10,disk-like-member 6 and the inwardly extending flange on rimsection 2.

The rim sectioh 3 is detachably held in place by bolts 11 which passthrough the inwardly extending flanges on the rim sections and throughapertures in the members 5 and 6 of the web and spacing members 10, andare threaded at their inner ends into the blocks 9. A metallicstiffening ring 12 surrounds the outer end of sleeve 7 and is welded tothe outer face of the member 6 of the web.

A sheet metal driving spider 13 surrounds the inner end of sleeve 7 andis welded to said sleeve. The spider 13 is formed with radiallyextending fingers bent laterally toward the web and engaging in thegrooves formed in the inner face of the web by the corrugations. Thespider 13 is welded to disk-like member 5 of the web along the edges ofthe fingers of the spider. A metallic driving ring 14 is welded to the,face of the spider and surrounds the inner end of sleeve 7 between thespider 13 and a flange 15 formed on hub 1. T 0 form a driving connectionbetween the ring 14 and the hub 1, the ring 14 is provided withapertures adapted to receive the heads of a series of bolts 16 passingthrough the flange 15 on the hub. The bolts 16 may be also utilized tosecure a brake drum 17 to the hub. The entire rim-supporting structure,including the disk-like members 5 and 6, the spider, 13, rings 12 and14, and tube 7, is removably held on the hub by a hub cap 18 with thedriving rim interlocked with'the heads of bolts 16. '1 he hub cap 18 isformed with a beveled flange embracingthe stiffening ring 12 and isdetachably held to the outer end of the hub by bolts 19 which arethreaded into the end of the hub. A suitable dust cap 20 is threaded onthe hub cap. member?) may be cut away as shown at 21 and 23 to reducethe weight of the web structure, if desired.

In Fig. 11 a slightly modified form of corrugated web member orsupporting element is shown, said web member 5 being of substantiallydouble frusto-conoidal form, the summits of the ridges formed by thecorrugations at opposite faces of the member projecting laterally equaldistances beyond the plane of the perimeter of the member. The webmember 5 is adapted for attach: ment to a dished web member similar toweb member 6 in the construction heretofore described to form a hub andrim connecting web. The web so constructed may be associated with a huband rim in the manner shown in Figs. 1 to 10, or in any other suitablemanner.

In Figs. 12, 13 and 14 still another form of web is shown. In thisconstruction the .inner and outer members of the web are in- The dishedform with a channel 24 therein adjacent the perimeter of the Web. Theinner portion or member 26 of the web is provided with a centralaperture 27 registering with aperture 25 in the member 24, and saidinner member 26 is formed with radial corrugations increasing in widthand decreasing in depth from the aperture 27 to the perimeter of theweb. A stiffening or reinforcing ring 28 of rolled steel is confined inthe channel 24, the inner face of said ring being flush with the innerface of member 24. Said shown in the previously described constructionmay be supported on the web, the member 2 of the rim being permanentlysecured to the web by rivets passing through apertures 29 in the webmembers and ring 28 and through the inwardly extending flange on the rimmember. It will be obvious that,

if desired, the construction shown in Figs. 12 to 14 may be readilyformed S0 that the summits of the ridges formed by the corruations atthe inner side of the web would lie in the plane of the perimeter oftheweb, as in the construction shown in Figs. lto 10.

It will be obvious that various other forms of hubs, rims, and tires maybe associated with either of the sheet metal web structures abovedescribed, and that either of the web structures may be secured to thehub and rim or felly members of a wheel in various ways. It will also beobvious that the several welded parts may be secured together in otherways such as riveting or brazing.

A feature of importance resides in the fact that by the constructionshown a very rigid skeleton supporting web for the wheel rim is providedwhich is so constructed, and so connected with the rim and hub, thatentrance of dirt within the wheel structure is impossible. A furtherimportant feature of the invention resides in the fact that the web isso formed as to provide a strong, but light, beam-like structure welladapted to withstand heavy, lateral, torsional and vertical strains, thecorrugations being so shaped that the web comprises in effect a seriesof radially extending connected beams or columns of maximum width at thehub of the wheel.

What we claim is:

1. A vehicle wheel comprising an inner sheet metal web, member havingradially extending corrugations increasing in width and decreasing indepth toward the perimeter of the member, an outer sheet metal webmember, the inner face of which is engaged along radial lines by theouter face of the inner member along the summits of the ridges formed bythe corrugations at the outer side of the inner member, a hub extendingthrough the web members cen-.

trally thereof, and a rim supported by the web members.

2. A vehicle wheel comprising an inner sheet metal disk-like web memberhaving radially extending corrugations increasing in width anddecreasing in depth toward the perimeter thereof, an outer sheet metaldisklike web member secured to the inner member along the summits of theridges formed by the corrugations at the outer side of the inner member,a hub extending through the web members centrally thereof, a drivingspider having radially extending fingers held to the inner side of theinner member, a driving connection between the hub and spider, and a rimsupported by the web members.

3. A vehicle Wheel comprising an inner sheet metal disk-like web memberhaving radially extending corrugations increasing in width anddecreasing in depth toward the perimeter thereof, an outer sheet metaldisk-like webmember secured to the inner member and engaging the innermember along the summits of the ridges formed by the corrugations at theouter side of the inner member, a hub extending through the web memberscentrally thereof, a sheet metal spider secured to the inner member andhaving radially extending fingers bent laterally at their outer end intothe grooves formed in the inner face of the inner member by saidcorrugations, a driving connection between the hub and spider, and a rimsupported by the web members.

4. A vehicle wheel comprising an inner sheet meitaldisk-likle memberhaving radially extending corrugations increasing in width anddecreasing in depth toward the perimeter thereof, an outer sheet metaldisklike member of dished form welded to the outer face of the innermember along the summits of the corrugations formed in the inner member,a hub extending through the members centrally thereof, and a rimsupported by the members.

5. A vehicle wheel comprising an inner sheet metal member havingradially extending corrugations increasing in width and decreasing indepth toward the perimeter thereof, an outer sheet metal member securedto the outer face of the inner member along the summits of the ridgesformed by the corrugations in the inner member, a

sheet metal spider having radiallyextending arms bent laterally into thegrooves formed in the inner face of the inner mem her by thecorrugations, said spider being secured along the edges of the arms tothe inner member, a tubular sheet metal member extending throughregistering axial apertures in said inner and outer members and spiderand secured at its ends to the outer member and the spider, a hubextending through the tubular member, and a rim secured to the inner andouter members.

6. A vehicle wheel comprising an inner sheet metal disk-like'web memberhaving radially extending corrugations increasing in width anddecreasing in depth toward the perimeter thereof, an outer sheet metaldisklike web member secured to the inner web member along the summits ofthe ridges formed by the corrugations in the inner web member, a ,sheetmetal spider having radially extending arms bent laterally into thegrooves formed in the inner face of the inner web member by thecorrugations, said spider being secured along the edges of the arms tothe inner Web member, a tubular sheet metal member extending through theweb members and spider and secured at its ends to the outer web-memberand the spider, a hub extending through the tubular member, a drivingring surrounding the hub and secured to the spider, a driving connec-.tion between the ring and the hub, and a rim supported by the Webmembers.

-7. A vehicle wheel comprising two abutting sheet metal disk-lrike webmembers secured in fixed relation and having re istering centralapertures therein,.one 0 said Web members being provided with radiallyextending corrugations increasing in width and decreasing in depthtoward the perimeter thereof, a tubular sheet metal member extendingthrough the registering central apertures in the Web members and held torotate with said web members, a hub extending through said tubularmember, and means for securing the web members and tubular member on thehub to rotate therewith. 4

8. A hub andrim connecting element for wheels of the disk typecomprising two rig- 'in toward the perimeter thereof, the summits of theridges at one side of the corrugated portion of said element touchingthe concave face of the dished portion of the element.

In testimony whereof We hereunto aflix our signatures this 21st day ofJuly 1919.

ALFRED COTTON. LOUIE F. KOELLNER.

